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The original was posted on /r/exmormon by /u/KingSnazz32 on 2025-08-03 04:35:40+00:00.
They'd flown out to stay with a relative of one of her friends, and from there are going south along the coast to see some stuff before they each set out for their first year of college in a couple of weeks. They all graduated from high school in Utah. I'd known my niece was just waiting to go to college out of Utah to ghost the church, but was surprised at the others. One of them said they'd seen some missionaries about town earlier in the day, then the one boy in the group asked if we were LDS. I said no, and all three of my niece's friends said they were raised Mormon, but weren't any more.
I don't know what they meant by this, if their parents left a few years ago, or if they've just decided they're not going back now that they've graduated. I didn't want to prod, but I was proud that they'd already found their way out. No missions or premature temple marriages or any of that, just finishing high school and moving on. Two will be going to school in Utah, two not, but all four are out of the church. They all seemed like really good kids, too, with thoughtful plans and ambitions. It gave me a lot of hope for the next generation.
I'm sure Mormons as a whole aren't going anywhere, but maybe this generation is the last one where Mormons will dominate Utah, and those who remain will find it increasingly easy to leave, if that's how they decide to live their lives.